Fish skinning machine



June 24, 1952 G. E. HUBE 2,501,292

' FISH SKINNING MACHINE Filed March 2o, 194e 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 G. E. Hafw z w 2! .Mw w Z a o ..0 E. M m 0 l H 90u w Z3 4 v l .G la: m MU 5 6. o 9 l m m Z M 1 k @nl u W H m z E m uw m o 2 5 H z l. :ou lm 9 W 2 @N m m i m n.2 M M 4 [HIV :u M .4 l M O l 4 .J m..

June 24, 1952 G. E. HUBE 2,601,292

FISH SKINNING MACHINE Filed March 20. 1946 Y 1= Sheets-Sheet 4 ,weuon G. E. Hafy Swmkmnmhazg/J.

Patented June 24, 1952 signor, by"mesne assignments, to Pacific Labora-tories; Inc., Bellingham, Wash., a corporal-- vtinof `Washington Application March 2o, 194e, lserial No. 655,647

12 Claims This .invention reiatesto a slicing :nachine'and particulariy` to a slicingmachine adapted to the Skinning .offfisim Heretoffore, .slicing machines Iof the typedescribed in this.` invention usually relied upon friction between the objectY being slicedand an endless 'belt' carrying ,theobj ect Ato the actual slicing, mechanism. Also `some machines! employ suctiontoV hold the ob'jec'zt` against the Carrying member while itisbeingrdi'awn past alnoving knife. In such machines there is nostr'ong positive grip on the object as it passesA theknife; consequently,` uniform slices could not be obtained `from irregular objects.

Sometimes itis desirable to` out a. strip of varyingthickness from Ythe object. Such' isj the case in the Skinning of flshwhf'er'e the. skin along the dorsaland ventralsurf'acles is thckerthan along the lateral sides' oflthe" The' prioi" machines `weresnot adapted .tocutting a strip oi althickness varying according to' a desired'plan.

Itis an object offthis invention to provide an apparatus for slicing an irregular yieldable object. 4

It is also an' objectofi-thisinvention to provide an apparatus for skinningish.

Still another object of this invention is to provide means forcutting' slices in which the thickness of a slice varies according-to apre arranged plan.

A furtherfobject othis invention is to provide' a slicing machine for'slicing-irregular; yield-able objects in whicha uniform slicewill becbtained.

With these and `other objects in' mind,` this inu vention4 resides inl a machine which forcefully grips-a yielda-ble object land drawsit pasta moving Aknife `which `'is in xed'irelation to a guiding means against-which `theobj'ect is pressed.

in the' drawings:

Figure 1 is a sideel-evation' of themachine.

Figure 2 islaplan viewjof the machine with portions broken -awayto showvthe' construction.

Figure v3 is an end View of th'e'machine looking at'the `right-hand end 'ofthe machine in Figures 1 and 2;

Figure@t yis `asecticnal viewf taken Aon line H in Figure-2, showing the arrangement ofthe knifein respect to the guideroll.

Figure 5 is a sectional viewtaken' on `line "5L-5 in Figure 4; illustrating'the' operation of the fingers during the-slicing'operation,

As anl illustration of tlieA principles of this invention, ash l sli-inning machine embodying thev same' will loe-described? Referring ft Figuren 'i theemachine of-` this in'- vention-comprises a Yframe I of a tablelikelstructure which may ce constructed principally of angle ironstock with tablesurfaces 2` and?. at the upper portion of `the frame. The table surfaces are best'shown in Figure 2. Slightly below the table surfaces 2 and-3 and at. both ends of the frame, shafts dand are mounted for rotation in bearings which are attached to the frame. Keyed "to thesliaft's land 5 are pairs of spaced sprockets 6` and'l. Riding on shaft 8 locatednear the lowercen'tral part of the frame are a pair of `spaced'sprockets 9. A pair or" -parallel endlessv chains itl pass' over the pairs of sprockets 6, l and 9 and cooperate to provide an endless conveyor for moving objects to be sliced alongthe tables 2 and 3. Sprockets 6, `iiiced on drive shaft 4, serve to move the chains in a counter-clockwise direction through their path of travel while sprockets Tand 9 serve as idlers for guiding the chain inits path of movement. The location of shafts li and 5 andthe size of sprockets 6 and 'l are such that the chains l0 ride smoothly along the outer edges of the table surfaces '2 and 3'.v

Carried by one endof lshaft :iis a sprocket Il through which power required to move the chains I about the frameis delivered. to the shaft. Power for driving sprocket Il mayY beobtained either froma motor (not shown)` mounted upon the frame or from some outside source,

Extending between thespaced chains IU at regular intervals along theirlengthare 'the lower jaw mem-bers IZa'of clamps'lZ; The lower jaw members have upturnedr end' flanges provided with spacedopenings to receive the inneren'ds of pins extending throinghv the openings in the ends ofv opposite linlsof tliecha'ins i0. Thus the lower jaws are fixed with the links of the chains. Aty its* leading edge' the lower jaw member is providedwith two' alignedhorizo'ntal shaft re ceiving sockets I 2Zf`tl`iroughwhich a shaft i2c extends; Intermediate thes'ockets l2b, an upper jaw` |2`d'iis xed to shaft l2c 'for'movementwith said'shaft. Suitable-torsionsprings (not shown) may'begprovidedto urgethe jaws tolopen posi- E2C, and"consequently'rigidly' connected to the upper ijawiltd; are"levei-lar'ms` I3 withrollers ifi carried bylth'e'free endsthereof and extending toward thesides 4of the machine.'

Ateachsideof vthe upper portion of the frame are inwardlyexten'din'g ang'es lli which are slightly'spaced ab'ov'ewthe surfaces of tables 2 andSl These flangesw'serveas" tracks for engagem'ent oy 'rollersilron the"ends"of"the lever 3 arms I3 of the clamps I2. Each of the tracks I6 are provided with rollers I5, as clearly shown in Figs. l, 2 and 3 of the drawings, which are positioned slightly above and adjacent the sprockets 'I. As the conveyor chains I5 pass over the shaft 5, the arms I3 engage the rollers I to cause the jaws I2 to close. Just as the jaws of the clamp I2 are about to close, an operator standing at the feed end of the machine inserts a split fish between the jaws of the clamp with the skin side of the fish up. After the clamp moves past the inwardly extending rollers I5, it is maintained closed by engagement of the rollers I4 with the under surfaces of the tracks. I6. Thus the tail of the fish is securely gripped j;

between clamps throughout the travel of the fish over the tables 2 and 3, past the skinning knife I8.

As best illustrated in Figure 4 of the drawings, a slicing knife I8 is positioned beneath the table 3 at the edge of said table toward which the sh is moved by the conveyor. Directly above the knife is located the guide roll I9 for adjusting the thickness of the skin, or slice removed from the fish or other article moved past the knife.

Obviously the space between the knife I5 and the roller I9 is insufficient to enable the clamp I2 to be moved between the same. In order to enable the clamp to be moved between the knife I8 and the roller I9, the present invention provides means for raising the roller I9 suiciently to enable the clamps to be moved past the knife and roller without engaging either of them. In order to raise the roller I9 said guide roll I9 is mounted for rotation in bearings |911 supported by arms 20, which are pivotally mounted on bolts 2I carried by lugs 22 extending upwardly from each side of the frame. Ears 28a are provided at the free ends of arms 29 and are apertured to receive bolts 29h which are secured in the frame I to serve as guides for springs 23 positioned between the ears and the frame. Arms 2'5 are secured together by means of a tie and spacing rod c extending between the same. Adjacent the free ends of the arms 29 are mounted rollers 24. These rollers are adapted to engage with the peripheral surfaces of cams against which the rollers 24 are urged by the springs 23. Cams 25 are carried by a shaft 29 which is mounted in the upward movement of the arms 20 and consequently the upper position of the roller I9. The surface of cam 25 is provided with an indentation 26 which permits the arms 20 and the roller I9 carried thereby to be raised a sufficient distance to enable the clamps I2 to pass under the roller I9. In this connection it will be noted that the shaft 28 which carries the cam 25 is driven by a sprocket 30 which is connected by an endless chain 30a with a sprocket 3| xed on shaft 4. Thus, cams 25 are driven in timed relation with the movement of the chains I9. With this construction the cams 25 are rotated at such a speed that every time one of the clamps I2 is about to pass under the rollers I9, the notches 26 of cams 25 are brought into engagement with the rollers 24 to permit the springs 23 to lift the roller I9 to clear the clamp `I2.

After the clamp I2 has moved past the roller I9, the latter is positively lowered by the cam 25 so that its surface will be spaced a predeter` mined distance from the knife I8. In this position the roller I9 presses the fish downwardly so that only the skin or a thin slice of the same is permitted to pass between the roller I9 and the knife I 8. The roller is maintained in this lowered position until the next clamp carried by the chain is about to move past the roller I9. Adjusting screws 21 fix the position of bearings I9a and thereby provide means to adjust the distance between the knife and the lowered roller.

The actual slicing of the sh is accomplished by knife I8 which is located directly beneath guide roll I9 and at a level slightly below the level of table surfaces 2 and 3. The knife may be either of the continuous band type moving in one direction or of the oscillating type illustrated in the drawings.

Knife I8 is mounted in a bed in the upper surface of a casting 46 which extends transversely of the machine beneath the table 3. Casting 45 is supported on brackets 46a and is cut away intermediate its ends to provide space for fish to move under the knife I8. A keeper or gib 41 is mounted in position by screws 41a and serves to retain the knife I8 within its bed.

Casting 46 extends beyond the side of the machine and is shaped to provide a guide track on which is slidably mounted a cross head 36 to which one end of knife I8 is secured. As shown in Figures 1 and 3 the cross head has depending sides which embrace the guide track and which have inwardly extending flanges projecting into longitudinal slots in the sides of said track.

Cross head 36 is reciprocated by a connecting rod 3l the other end of which is carried by a crank pin eccentrically mounted relative to shaft 39 and driven by said shaft. As illustrated in the drawings, shaft 39 is rotatably mounted in bearings 40 suitably supported on the frame of the machine. Shaft 39 is driven by electric motor 42, the power from said motor being transmitted from a pulley 44 on the motor shaft through a V-belt 45 to a pulley 43 fixed on shaft 39.

The above described structure serves to oscillate the knife I8 to effectively slice the skin or desired portion from the body of the fish.

In order to maintain the skin of the fish in contact with the guide roller I9 throughout the width of said roller the present invention provides a simple mechanism. As shown in Figure 4, a plurality of fingers in the form of levers 4B closely spaced and arranged parallel to the direction of movement of the fish are located directly under the knife I 8. The levers 48 are positioned at regular` intervals across the width of the table and are pivotally mounted on a transversely extending shaft 49. At one end of eachof the levers 48 there is connected one yend of a coil spring 50, the other end of which is secured in the eye of an eyebolt which extends through a transverse beam 54. The eyebolts 55 are secured in suitable openings in the beam 54 by means of nuts threaded mounted on the lower ends. of the bolts and may thereby be vertically adjusted to vary thel tension on the individual springs 50.

Beam 54 extends between two downwardly extending supports 56 carried by the frame of the machine and may be fixed in said supports at various elevations by providing said supports with ahplurality of vertically spaced openings 53 to receive bolts or other securing means exaccuses f` tendingl through said openingsgntontheibeam 54. Thus vertical adjustment; of -i the position of :beam 54 may be effected.

Instead of the springs 50. hydraulic or pneumatic means maybe providedzfor exerting; the requireddownward pressure on the ends of the levers 48.

An important characteristic `of the fingers is that they are individually actuated and each finger is free to move without aifectinguany other. When` a yieldable, irregular object such as a half of a fish is drawn by a clamp I2.between the. fingers and the guideroll. the fingersxpress the object `against the guide rollrnaking` the upper surface of the objectfconformto .theshape of r`the guide roll. A:` flexible sheetqor'fapron4 5I overlies the flngers to afford a smoother continuous pressureV against the object.. Ther-sheet is preferably made of neoprene but, of course, can be made of any other. similar` flexible inaterial.

Referring to Figure 5 it Will be seen-,that Vthe fingers press the object flat against'the-surface of the guide roll. If it isdesired that astrip of varying thickness be cut from the object fed through the machine the guide. roll may be crowned or tapered, as shown greatly exaggerated in this drawing. If a fish. for example, is slit along the dorsal-ventral axis, the skin along the lateral line is thinner thanthatalong boththe dorsal and ventral surfaces. Consequently, a slice slightly thicker at theedges than at the center should `be cut and for this purpose the guide rollshould be tapered, as shown in Figure 5. Properv centering of the object necessary to make the taperedroll effective is assured by the narrow gripping area of clamp I2. Of course, slices of Widely yvarying thickness can be'obtained merely by vvarying the diameter of the guide roll at differentA sections along its axis.

In operating a machine constructed as hereinbefore described, power is applied tothe shaft 4 which causes the conveyor-to move over the tables 2 and 3 and the roller I9 to Vbe periodically raised and lowered to-permit the'clamps-IZy to pass between said roller and the knife I8. The motor 42 is then started to0 effect reciprocation or oscillation of the knife I8; With thev conveyor mechanism and the knife -inoperatiom an operatorthen feeds-splitsh with the skinside up into the machine by placing the--tails ofsaid fish between the jawsv of the open clamps as they pass over the shaft 5 or before the arms I3 engage the closing rollers I5. Just before the clamps I2 reach the guide roll I9, said roll is raised to permit thelclamp to pass under the same. ImmediatelyV` after the clampA hasibeen moved beyond the roll I9, the latter is lowered to press the under flesh side ofthe-split'fish onto the `edge of the oscillating knife I8. As the cla-mp I2 continues to move forward, it drags with it the skin severedifrom thefleshportion of the fish, as clearly shown in Figure 4 ofthe drawings, andtheflesh portionlof the fish which passes under the knife drops downand'fthrough the machine into a chute 52 which feeds-thesame to a suitable point of delivery.

By providing the fingers orlevers 48 Abeneath the roll I 9, thefiesh is pressed-'upwardly so that the upper surface of theiskin'is maintained in contact with the roll ISthroughout thewidth of saidroll. fish atapoint so that-theskin iscompletelylremoved .from the- `flesh portion thereof This insures theknife engagingtheiil) As .the clamp I 2, gripping the, partially severed skin ofthe sh, progresses across the table 3, the severingaction is continued until :the'skin is completelyremoved fromlthe fish. The-table 3 `and the guide track` IBiare made of 'such lengths that by thetime therollernll` on the ends ofthe arms I3 reach the ends 32:,of the tracks IE the skin will beqcompletely severed `andv will haveabeen. pulled far enough over the end 33 of tablet so that when the .clamps I2 are opened the skin will drop downv into a receptacle orf chute for collection. By shortening thetable 3,. as indicated in'Figure 2, the skin will be-completely supported by the clamp by the time theclamp opens so that the weight of the skin Will effect its removal from the clamp.

As each of the .clampspasses over the shafti or just before the'rollers |41 engage theends of the tracks I6 to closerthe clampsganother fish to be skinned is inserted in the clamp. Byoperating the machineat.l an optimum speed, a large number of fish may be skinned during. the: course of a working day.

While `in the machine illustrated in the acf companying drawngsand describediabove, the

fish is'placed Vbetween `the jaws of the clamps I2 with the skin side up, it is, of course, within thel contemplationv of the presentlinvention to construct theA machine in an invertedmanner withthe knife and pressing fingers positioned above the roller. With this construction, the skin will pass beneath the knife and the flesh portion of the fish will pass over the knife.

From the foregoing description, it will be appreciated that the present invention provides a fish Skinning machinev in `which a fish to be skinned is firmly gripped by a clamp` carried by a conveyor for moving the vvfishby askin removing knife. It will also be noted that the present invention provides means for forcing the entire surface of the skin against the surface of a guide roll so that the skin may be completely removed from the fish. In this connection it should beobserved that by tapering or otherwise shaping the surface of the roll I9, the skin of a fish can be completely removed even though the skin is thick at the dorsal and ventral portions thereof. The apparatus operates on fish which have been split in the central longitudinal dorsal-ventral plane into halves, each fish half being defined by a fiat fiesh side and a laterally curved convex skin side. Pressure s applied tothe skin side of the fish halves in such manner as to compensate for increased thickness of the skin at its dorsal and ventral portions, and to thus urge the interface between the skin and esh into a substantially straight line with the flesh below the skin. With the fish halves pressed into this conditionl the knife is run across the interface to separate the skin and iiesh, and the skin is pulled past the knife whereby the Weight of the esh and the tensile force on the skin act in different directions to aid in pulling the skin and flesh apart after the initial incision of the knife. Apart from the foregoing, the machine as hereinbefore present invention relatingy toA the y:removal vof shf skins which are thicker at the dorsal and ventral portions will also be useful in the removal of slices of non-uniform thickness from other yieldable, irregular objects. Also the pressure fingers hereinbefore described for maintaining the surface of the skin in contact with the guide roll throughout its width will be found desirable in connection with the slicing of other yieldable, irregular objects.

While specific constructional details have been referred to in order to fully describe the present invention, it is to be understood that the details of construction may be varied without departing from the scope of the present invention.

I claim:

1. Apparatus for separating the fiesh from the skin of fish which are split in the central longitudinal dorsal-ventral plane, comprising a frame having receiving and discharging ends, a rotatable roller and a knife mounted on said frame, said roller having a smooth peripheral surface and said knife having a cutting edge presented tangentially to said surface and spaced therefrom a distance only slightly greater than the thickness of the skin of the fish, conveying means for moving the fish between said receiving and discharging ends and past said knife including gripping members to clamp the tails of successive fish and pull them tail end first past said knife with the skin side of the fish presented toward said roller, means operable in timed relation with the movement of said gripping members to close them on a fish tail prior to their arrival at said knife and to open them for releasing the fish tail and skin after they have passedA said knife, and a plurality of fingers positioned along the length of said roller to engageand press the fish against said roller immediately in advance of said knife, and means for mounting said fingers for independent yielding movement governed by the thickness of that portion of the fish which they contact.

2. A construction in accordance with claim 1 wherein the surface of said roller is crowned.

3. A construction in accordance with claim l wherein the fish engaging surfaces of said ngers are covered with a flexible apron.

i. A construction in accordance with claim 1 wherein means are provided to oscillate said knife in a direction laterally of the direction of movement of said conveying means.

5. Apparatus for separating the flesh from the skin of split'fish comprising a frame, a rotatable roller and a knife mounted on said frame, said roller having a smooth peripheral surface and said knife having a cutting edge presented tangentially to said surface and spaced therefrom a distance only slightly greater than the thickness of the skin of the fish, conveying means including gripping members to clamp the tail of the fish and pull it past said knife with the skin presented to the surface of said roller, and a plurality of fingers positioned along the length of said roller adjacent said knife to engage and press the sh against said roller immediately in advance of the edge of said knife, and means for mounting said fingers for independent yielding movement governed by the thickness of that portion of the fish which they contact.

5. Apparatus for separating the iiesh from the skin of split fish comprising a frame, a rotatable roller and a knife mounted on said frame, said roller varying in diameter between its center and its ends and having a smooth peripheral surface and said knife having a cutting edge presented tangentially to said surfaceand spaced therefrom a distance only slightly greater than the thickness of the skin of the fish, conveying means for carrying the fish past said knife with the skin presented to the surface of said roller, and yielding pressing means adjacent said knife to engage and press the fish against said roller immediately in advance of the edge of said knife.

7. Apparatus for separating the flesh from the skin of a split fish comprising a frame, a rotatable roller and a knife mounted on said frame, said roller varying in diameter between its center and its ends and having a smooth peripheral surface and said knife having a cutting edge presented tangentially to said surface and spaced therefrom a distance only slightly greater than the thickness of the skin of the sh, conveying means 'including gripping members to clamp the tail of the fish and pull it past said knife with the skin presented to the surfacev of said roller, and a plurality of fingers positioned along the length of said roller adjacent said knife to engage and press the fish against said roller immediately in advance of the edge of said knife, and means for mounting said fingers for independent yielding movement governed by the thickness of that portion of the sh which they contact.

8. A skinning machine comprising a frame, a guide roll on said frame having a smooth peripheral surface and which varies in diameter between its center and its ends, a conveyor for carrying the object to be skinned to and beyond said roller, said conveyor having clamping means for gripping the object to be skinned, a knife mounted on said frame having a cutting edge presented tangentially of said roller, and a plurality of fingers which urge said object against said guide roll, said fingers being mounted adjacent the cutting edge of said knife and for independent yielding movement from and toward said guide roller.

9. A slicing machine comprising a frame having a top table surface, a guide roll mounted on said frame above said surface, a knife mounted on said frame on one side of said guide roll having a cutting edge presented tangentially toward said guide roll, a continuous conveyor chain which is mounted for movement along said table surface toward the other Yside of said guide roll and said knife, said chain having means thereon for gripping the object to be sliced in order to convey same past said knife, means on said frame adjacent said guide roll and said knife for yieldably urging the object to be sliced against said guide roll, a cam carried by said frame for intermittently displacing said guide roll from said knife to permit passage therebetween of said gripping means on said chain, means on said frame for oscillating the cutting edge of said knife between said urging means and said guide roll, and means for adjusting said guide roll with respect to said knife.

l0. A construction in accordance with claim 9 wherein said means for urging the object against the guide roll comprises a plurality of fingers indepndently mounted on said frame.

11. A slicing machine comprising a frame, a guide roll mounted on said frame, an endless chain mounted for movement in said frame for moving the object to be sliced under said guide roll, a plurality of fingers mounted on said frame having engaging ends positioned adjacent to said guide roll to urge the object against said guide roll, springs in said frame acting on said fingers and individually urging them toward said guide roll, and a knife mounted for movement on said frame between said fingers and said guide roll.

12. A slicing machine comprising a frame having a top table surface, a guide roll mounted on said frame above said surface, a knife mounted on said frame on one side of said guide roll having a cutting edge presented tangentially toward said guide roll. a conveyor mounted for movement along said table surface toward the other side of said guide roll and said knife, said conveyor having clamps thereon for gripping the object to be sliced in order to convey same past said knife, a plurality of ngers individually mounted on said frame having. engaging ends which press the object against said guide roll while it is being sliced by said knife, means to oscillate said knife between said guide roll and said fingers in a plane generally parallel to the 10 axis of said guide roll, means for adjusting the clearance between said knife and said guide roll, and means operating in timed relationship with the movement of said conveyor to displace said guide roll from said knife in order to pass said clamps.

GOTTFRIED ERWIN HUBE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,347,237 Waddington July 20, 1920 1,714,355 Englen et al May 2l, 1929 1,911,810 Cooke May 30, 1933 2,173,336 Lamere et al Sept. 19, 1939 2,215,114 Baader et al Sept. 17, 1940 2,380,755 Hendrickson July 31., 1945 

